Air Cargo

Australian airline Qantas today announced a series of improvements to enhance service between Australia and Asia, as part of the company’s “growing with Asia” strategy.

Emirates SkyCargo, a cargo airline based in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, has appointed Moaza Al Falahi as vice president of cargo business and product development.

International Airlines Group, created from the merger of British Airways and Iberia, has confirmed that Iberia and its trade unions have not reached an agreement regarding the airline’s transformation plan proposals...

Air cargo rates are bottoming out as global demand is set to grow in 2013 after two consecutive years of decline, according to the International Air Transport Association.

Incheon Airport handled 2.4 million metric tons of cargo in 2012, down from 2.54 million metric tons in 2011 as volumes declined in nearly every major lane.

The Association of Asia Pacific Airlines, a trade group of airlines based in the Asia-Pacific region, today reported international air cargo demand, expressed in freight metric ton kilometers...

Revenue Technology Services, a Plano, Texas-based transportation technology company, has launched CargoPriceOpt, a pricing decision support system for the cargo industry.

DHL Express has renewed its lease agreement at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol for another 10 years.

Dubai International Airport reported cargo volume in December 2012 was 201,949 metric tons, increasing 6.5 percent from 189,593 metric tons.

Finnair will open new cargo routes to Hanoi, Vietnam, and Xi’an, China, this summer.

SkyCargo, the freight division of airline Emirates, has expanded its capacity and freighter network with the addition of three new Boeing 777F aircraft.

Manchester Airports Group significantly boosted its share of the U.K. cargo market with an agreement to buy London Stansted Airport.

Asia Airfreight Terminal, an air cargo terminal based at the Hong Kong International Airport, reported its tonnage throughput in December 2012 was 68,252 metric tons, increasing 11 percent compared with the same period last year.

Luxembourg-based Cargolux Airlines International’s board of directors has elected Paul Helminger as its chairman.

Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific Airways reported combined Cathay Pacific and Dragonair cargo volume in December 2012 was 146,897 metric tons, rising 3.4 percent compared with December 2011.

IAG Cargo, created from the merger of British Airways World Cargo and Iberia Cargo, has appointed Rodrigo Casal as vice president of Latin America and Tony Snell as regional commercial manager of the Middle East and Africa...

AMR Corporation, the parent company of American Airlines, today reported profit in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $262 million, jumping $1.4 billion from 2011’s net loss of $1.1 billion.

Japanese airline All Nippon Airways temporarily grounded its entire fleet of 17 Boeing 787 Dreamliners on Jan. 16 in Japan after smoke was observed on one of the jets in flight and the pilot made an emergency landing...

Incheon International Airport in South Korea recently funded 50 percent of the purchasing costs of nearly 7,360 environmentally friendly biodegradable vinyl packages for ground service companies in the airport...

Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals, which handles cargo at Hong Kong International Airport, reported traffic in the fourth quarter of 2012 was 754,226 metric tons, rising 6.2 percent from the fourth quarter of 2011.

UPS’s withdrawal of its $6.9 billion offer to buy TNT Express raises what steps the Dutch shipping company will take next to sell its Asian and Latin American ground networks, health care supply-chain operations, and European road and parcel assets.

Dubai-based airline Emirates will add a daily service to Warsaw, Poland, starting Feb. 6.

Etihad Cargo, the cargo division of Etihad Airways, will launch a new weekly freight operation from Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, to Guangzhou, China, effective Jan. 17.

Cathay Pacific Services, a subsidiary of Cathay Pacific Airways that operates the new Cathay Pacific Cargo Terminal at Hong Kong International Airport, will open the new terminal on Feb. 21.

AMR Corporation, parent of American Airlines, reported a 3.7 percent increase year-over-year in system cargo ton miles for the month of December 2012, at 149,505, up from 144,178 ton miles in the same month in 2011.

After a seesaw year in which freight rates bounded up and down like a yo-yo, shippers and carriers alike are looking for stability and predictability in their businesses.

Lufthansa Cargo closed 2012 with traffic down 8.5 percent from the previous year, but the German carrier’s utilization of its freighter fleet was unchanged as it slashed capacity in line with sharply lower demand in the global air cargo market.

IAG Cargo, created from the merger of British Airways World Cargo and Iberia Cargo, will launch a cargo service between London Heathrow and Chengdu in southwest China, effective Sept. 22.

United Airlines has appointed Jim Bellinder as vice president of sales for United Cargo, effective immediately.

International Airlines Group, the merged British Airways-Iberia carrier, reported 506 million metric ton kilometers of cargo in December 2012, a 4.0 percent decrease year-over-year.

Finnish air freight carrier Finnair Cargo has used Route Exchange, an online platform where airports and airlines can exchange data and information regarding potential new routes, to open a new base in Brussels.

The Association of Asia Pacific Airlines’ preliminary traffic figures for November 2012 showed that international air cargo demand, measured in freight metric ton kilometers, was 0.9 percent higher than in November 2011.